Here's Why Alex Morgan Wears a Pink Headband at Every Soccer Match

Just in case you haven't been paying attention, the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team has been kicking ever so much butt in the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup, having shut out both Chile and Thailand — the latter by 13 goals, five of which were scored by forward and proven badass Alex Morgan.

If you have been paying attention, you might have noticed that the Olympian and recent Sports Illustrated cover model always wears a pink headband during matches. And while it doesn't match the colors of any of her national or Orlando Pride uniforms, Morgan has a very good reason for sticking to this particular hair accessory.

PopSugar reports that Morgan has been seen wearing a pink headband since her college days at University of California, Berkeley, where she met the fellow soccer player who'd become her husband, Servando Carrasco. According to the Major League Soccer (MLS) website, Carrasco's mother, Gloria, was diagnosed with breast cancer around this time — the first of two times, both of which she survived. As a show of love and support for her mother-in-law, Morgan has worn the headband in the color so closely associated with breast cancer awareness.

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But the meaningful headband actually isn't a headband at all. While, from a distance, it may look like one of those skinny, elastic bands that so many athletes rely on to keep hair out of their faces, it's actually made of a special kind of athletic tape called prewrap (or underwrap). In a 2012 YouTube video for prewrap manufacturer Mueller, Morgan explains that she rips off a piece the gauzy, sticky material long enough to wrap snuggly around her head, knots it securely, and sets it in place. It eventually rolls up a bit, creating the look of a skinny headband.

Interested in trying Morgan's prewrap headband hack? You can get a roll — in pink, of course — for just $5 on Amazon.